Tips and Tricks for C-Section Recovery
Having a c-section is no joke. “It’s major surgery!!” said everyone that I ever explained how tough recovery was to. I mean, I know, but I didn’t know until I knew…ya know? My c-section was not planned, so I did not go into this experience with any tools under my belt. The only tool I had was different birthing positions and that sure didn’t help me with C-section recovery…
So here are the tips and tricks for c-section recovery that, quite literally, saved me:
My non-negotiable rules for my day:
These are the rules that I needed to feel like a sane human after my c-section.The goal was to do every single one of them every single day. Some days were easier than others…duh. But I started to look forward to these little habits each day and I swear they helped my mental health.
Brush my hair - not do a fancy hairstyle, just brush it.
Hang out downstairs and not upstairs in my bed - I knew that I would go stir crazy if I spent the entire day in the same place I spent the entire night. The bed rotting was not for me. But the couch rotting was!
Step outside at least once - sometimes I literally just stepped outside and then came back inside.
Say yes to help - this was absolutely the most difficult thing for me to do. I am such a control-freak and accepting help is tough for me to do. But I literally could not do anything. I couldn’t even pull up my own underwear after going to the bathroom. So, yes, I accepted help.
Change out of my pajamas - This really helped me feel like a normal human again. Sometimes I would just change into another pair of pajamas, but it felt like “getting ready” for the day.
Drink coffee out of a cute cup - This was fun because it gave me an excuse to shop for cute cups. Like this one and this one.
Meals I prepped:
I went a little crazy with meal prepping the day before my water broke (not a day sooner). It was like Ratatouille took over my body. So here are the recipes that I was so thankful that I made before my C-sectino:
Vegetarian Lasagna - I made two of these and froze them so I was able to just pop it in the oven before eating. We then had leftovers for a few days!
Breakfast sandwiches - I made SO MANY of these. I had one for breakfast every day for three weeks and they were incredible.
Chicken Casserole - I actually made this after my water broke while I was in a full panic about prepping every last minute item. Which feels so crazy now! I froze it in different containers and would eat this for lunch!
And some honorable mentions of food that I ate every day:
Trader Joe’s protein pancakes
Chobani protein yogurts
Both so great for a quick protein snack!
Items I purchased for my C-section recovery:
(This does not include the copious amounts of online shopping I did to get a rush of endorphins.)
Wedge pillow- This was my first purchase after my C-section because I quickly learned that I could not actually lay all the way down on my back in bed. I slept sitting up in the hospital and I knew there was no way to do this at home.
Hand rail for getting out of bed- the hospital had one, but my bed did not. Using your abs is not an option after a c-section, so this was so useful for hoisting myself up.
High waisted underwear - I ordered these ones for right after birth and these ones for a few weeks later when I didn’t want my underwear to be near my scar. I still wear them!
500 pairs of pajamas - like I mentioned earlier, sometimes I would just go from pajama to pajama. Having cute pairs like this one and this one helped me feel more put together.
Haaka brace - a literal must have! I still wear this when doing my core exercises. This helped me feel like my insides weren’t falling out of my body and is a safe way to start engaging core muscles again.
Physical therapy helped with:
I have always gone to pelvic floor therapy, even before pregnancy. But during my c-section recovery, this was an absolute must. There was so much I didn’t know because health professionals just did not tell me about c-section recovery and what to expect. My physical therapist was a literal angel and I will never stop recommending pelvic floor and abdominal therapy to everyone.
Getting comfortable with my scar - oh boy, was this scary! I was terrified of my scar. I didn’t even look at it for the first three weeks. My PT was so kind and educated me on exactly what was happening with my scar. She would use this machine to help relax the scar tissue, reduce some of the internal adhesions, and relieve some of the tightness and pain around my incision.
Core work and fixing my diastasis recti - I knew that I needed to start engaging my core safely, but I was too scared that I was doing something wrong that I didn’t do anything at all. My physical therapist taught me exactly what to do and how to start gaining my strength back in my core, including fixing my diastasis recti and learning how to use my body again.
Understanding what actually happened with my body- Why don’t the doctors tell us this? I knew I had a c-section, but I had no clue what was happening to my body while it was healing. My physical therapist was like my guru. She had an overwhelming amount of information and guided me through every twinge and pain point I experienced. I will forever be grateful to her.
Having a c-section was not what I hoped for with labor. There is so much information that is not shared with mothers for c-section recovery and I hope this helps at least one mom out there.
